Organization and Administration

Quantitative research in vocational education and training (VET) is routinely affected by missing or incomplete information. However, the handling of missing data in published VET research is often sub-optimal, leading to a real risk of generating results that can range from being slightly biased to being plain wrong. Given that the growing availability of data from large-scale surveys and administrative collections offers exciting new opportunities for quantitative VET research, it is important that researchers follow best-practice approaches when using such data in their own work. Against this backdrop, we: (1) provide a primer on the use of appropriate missing data methods for quantitative VET research; and (2) illustrate the detrimental effects of inefficient methods on research results via a simulation study using real-world education and training data from the Longitudinal Surveys of Australian Youth (LSAY).

Historically plagued by concerns about the quality of the curriculum, instruction, vocational education teachers, and responsiveness to the needs of the workplace, the United States vocational education system has long suffered from negative perceptions among students, parents, school personnel, policymakers, and business and industry representatives. However, in the years since the publication of The Unfinished Agenda (National Commission on Secondary Vocational Education. The unfinished agenda: the role of vocational education in the high school. National Center for Research in Vocational Education, Columbus, 1984), a highly critical report authored by The National Commission on Secondary Vocational Education, the U.S. vocational education system has undergone many changes and reforms. Many of these changes have focused on the vocational education curriculum and have been directed at ensuring a supply of skilled labour to address the skills gap that exits between the abilities of workers and the needs of the workplace. Other changes have increased linkages to post-high school training to meet the needs for a more educated workforce. Additional efforts have focused on increasing school-business/industry collaboration, improving teacher quality and marketing the value of vocational education. Challenges still remain, including funding for vocational education, providing career awareness and guidance for students as they progress through school, and educating an increasingly diverse high school student population.

The educational sub-disciplines of Organizational Education and Vocational Education and Training are strongly intertwined in regard to content and genealogy. The authors argue therefore that it would be fruitful to combine these two perspectives more consistently. On the one hand Vocational Education and Training does not systematically include the complex of organizational learning in its own research and theory. On the other hand research in Vocational Education and Training genuinely focuses on learning in non-pedagogical organizations and thus could more explicitly be utilized for research in Organizational Education. In combining these two sub-disciplines, new questions on organizational development, on workplace learning, on informal learning or on the governance of vocational education may be identified.

Not all colleges and universities for elite education mode; Employment employment dilemma, have prompted us to thinking about the classification of Education; Set up a complete modern vocational education system, come up with a modern occupation education system standards and evaluation methods, given the policy inclination, lead level in vocational colleges, the existing three colleges and universities and a considerable part of two colleges and universities to occupation colleges; For the specialized subject of ordinary universities and colleges of undergraduate course to higher vocational training, college students to actively implement the "2+1" training mode, the implementation of "3+1" training mode of undergraduates.

Although there has been substantial research and reform in Vocational Education and Training (VET) over the past thirty years, it is argued that this has ostensibly had limited effectiveness on practices in TAFE colleges. Many policy changes during this period have not resulted in the requisite changed practices by TAFE teachers. This paper reports on an investigation of the concerns for TAFE teachers in Western Australia when carrying out their work functions in a changing VET environment. Using semi-structure interviews with fifty-five TAFE teachers from three colleges the study explored the everyday lives of this workforce, also known as VET practitioners. The issues which emerged were categorised in four broad themes: college administration systems, financial constraints, pedagogical skills and college management. In addition, TAFE teachers indicated that they were adopting an unofficial code of professional conduct using practices which may not necessarily align with organisational objectives.

This study aims to analyze papers related to women's vocational competency development education published in domestic academic journals over the past 20 years from 2003 to 2023 to explore research trends and derive implications for women's human resource development. To this end, content analysis was conducted on 86 studies on women's vocational competency development education using the year of publication, journal, research subject, research topic, and research method as the framework for analysis. The results of the analysis showed that women's vocational competency development education research has been continuously increasing and has been published in various academic journals. The most common research subjects were studies on career status such as job seekers, employees, and career interruptions, and in particular, studies on women with career interruptions were overwhelmingly numerous. The most common research topic was vocational education and training, and most studies focused on educational effects such as specific targets or employment outcomes within the female group. The research field was mainly conducted in education, and quantitative research was mainly utilized. The implications of the research results include the need for research on women's job competency development education that reflects the changes and diversity of the female group, an approach to job competency development education from a lifelong education perspective, and strengthening the development of education programs related to promising occupations and future jobs for women. In addition, the follow-up research suggests the need for expansion of practical research such as program model development, and research on the impact of career development paradigm changes on women's job competency development education and performance evaluation.

Vocational education plays an important role in preparing graduates who are in line with industry needs, but there is a gap between the competencies of graduates and the demands of the world of work, leading to high unemployment rates of vocational graduates. This study explores the employability skills of vocational education graduates and the relevance of their competencies through industrial practice with a qualitative approach and literature study. Of the six articles analyzed, five used qualitative methods, one quantitative, and none applied R&D methods, thus opening up opportunities for further exploration. The majority of the studies examined students and industry, with interviews and observation as the main instruments. The findings suggest that employability skills research in vocational education tends to focus on qualitative approaches and the relationship between the education sector and industry. This research is expected to provide insights for curriculum development that is more in line with the needs of the world of work.Kata kunci: Industri, Kerja, Keterampilan, Pendidikan, Praktik

Vocational educationVocational education, the form of education most closely aligned with the working world, has become a strategic choice for countries worldwide. This chapter provides an overview of vocational education in China. This chapter first selects representative data and excellence indicators to illustrate the basic features and developmental trends of secondary vocational education in China compared to major global counterparts. Secondly, it shares the Ministry of Education’sMinistry of Education (MOE) efforts in promoting the digitization and standardization of Vocational education and local governments’ initiatives in fostering industry-education integrationIndustry-education integration. The compelling cases are presented to show vocational education and its roles in fostering personal growth and societal advancement. The chapter also shares narratives of exemplary “dual qualified” teachers and their contributions to teaching, research, and service. In addition, this chapter reviews the recent research trends of vocational education research in China in the past 5 years and the key policies shaping China’s vocational educationVocational education. Overall, the Chinese government has established a relatively comprehensive vocational education systemEducation system. This chapter also discusses some challenges, such as fundingFunding constraints, teacher shortages and qualificationsQualification, the property rights of digital resources, infrastructureInfrastructure needs for industry-education integrationIndustry-education integration, and the stigma of vocational educationVocational education.

Purpose: The growing public interest in vocational education and training (VET), most recently since the economic crisis of 2007/2008, has led to an exponential increase in articles with a vocational focus, underscoring the need for review studies for the purposes of systematic knowledge aggregation, clarification and interpretation. We assume that review studies follow the same minimum standards as other research methods: The review must be at least reproducible and thus the results verifiable or falsifiable. So far, however, the review methods used in VET research have not been investigated. Our purpose is to review the review procedures and methods used in published reviews of VET research to identify their current methodological quality. Approach: To classify the review studies, we initially developed a conceptual framework to distinguish different types of reviews. We then developed a methodological framework to assess the review methods used. Overall, to accelerate the review process, our review of reviews (or umbrella review) followed the rapid review approach: we limited our search to reviews in English published between 2014 and 2019 in peer-reviewed journals with a sub-stantial VET focus and indexed in Scopus and/or Web of Science. Therefore, we did not examine all existing reviews in the field of VET research. Rather, our specific focus was on a core sector of scientific research: peer-reviewed articles in curated databases. Furthermore, we concentrated on the review procedures and methods used, not on the content of the reviews. Findings: We identified nine journals with a substantial VET focus, yielding a total of 1,283 published articles between 2014 and 2019, of which only 19 articles (1.48%) were literature reviews. Of these 19 reviews, six were excluded from our umbrella review because of unclear methodological procedures. Based on the review typology we developed, five of the remaining 13 reviews were conceptual in nature, four were scoping reviews, three were evidence-oriented, and one was critical in nature. None of the reviews examined focused on meta-syntheses, research methods or meta-analyses. In total, this resulted in current review gaps with respect to theory generation (meta-synthesis), practice of theory elaboration and testing (methodological review) and the determination of overall effects across single studies (meta-analysis). Finally, our examination of the reviews showed that their scope was mostly clearly presented. However, with regard to the process steps ‘data selection’ and ‘data processing’, only a few reviews fully met the requirements of the methodological framework.Conclusion: Our review leads to four conclusions. 1) More systematic syntheses are needed because there is a substantial quantitative gap in review research. 2) In particular, there is a need for review studies with a focus on meta-synthesis, research methods and meta-analysis, as there is a current gap in these areas. 3) Reviews should be based on a review methodology with transparent and reproducible methods and verifiable or falsifiable results. The high number of subjective syntheses with unclear review procedures indicates that this mindset is not yet fully established in the field of VET research. 4) In the studies examined, there is a high degree of heterogeneity regarding to the accuracy and completeness of the methodological steps and data. The conceptual and methodological frameworks developed for the analysis can serve as guidelines for the conduct of reviews, and thus, the frameworks could contribute to the further development of the methodological basis of reviews.

This year has been special. The European Conference on Educational Research ECER 2020, which was to take place in Glasgow, Scotland, was cancelled. We would have loved to meet in person to discuss recent research findings and to share new and innovative ideas. Due to Covid-19, this was not possible. Given the special situation, we are even more pleased to present the 2020 edition of the ECER proceedings, Trends in Vocational Education and Training Research, Vol. III as a contribution to support communication amongst researchers and to contribute to policy and practice. The present publication includes more than 30 papers that illustrate planned, ongoing and completed VET research. All papers are based on double-blind peer-reviewed abstracts that were accepted for presentation at the ECER in Glasgow. Final papers were commented by VETNET board members and supported authors in revising their contributions. The papers address initial, continuing and higher vocational education and training, the advancement of individual careers, the education and training of VET educators, and the regional, national and international development of VET through diverse measures. The wide scope of topics positions VET research as a multi-thematic and multi-disciplinary endeavour. VET research addresses questions at the societal, organisational and individual levels – without losing the focus on what’s important: to educate and train people and to allow them to fulfil their potential through vocational education and training. VETNET is a network of researchers interested in exploring societal, policy, governance, organisational, institutional and individual factors that shape and explain vocational education, learning and training across the lifespan. It welcomes members and contributions from all over the world. With its publications, VETNET aims to foster knowledge sharing and mutual learning among researchers and between research, practice and policy. The publications help to keep up with current projects and emerging topics in VET, encourage discussion and cooperation, and support the establishment of a visible and influential European landscape of VET research. VETNET builds on the expertise and the commitment of its members – we appreciate all valuable contribution to the proceedings and other VETNET activities – whether in person, online or in written, let’s stay in contact. Bern and London, 10 November 2020 Dr Christof Nägele, VETNET chair / link convenor University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, School of Education Professor Dr Barbara E. Stalder, VETNET chair / link convenor Bern University of Teacher Education Dr Natasha Kersh, VETNET programme chair 2020 UCL Institute of Education, Education Practice and Society, London

The chapter introduces the occupation and vocational education as a subject of research and their research framework, which include the emergence and origins of didactic approaches and concepts of vocational teaching and learning. The author reviews the history of research on vocational disciplines and vocational didactics at universities and the relation between research on occupation and vocational education and its methods in contemporary historical retrospect. Areas, bounds, and working fields of vocational pedagogy, vocational didactics, and vocational disciplines are also analyzed. The author further predicts the development opportunities and prospects for the subjects of vocational didactics and occupation research on vocational education.

The article presents an overview of the changes in vocational education and training and challenges posed to social partners, seeking for more efficient organization of vocational training and education. In order to create knowledge, high technology and skilled-based economy in Lithuania, it is necessary to have an effective training and business world interaction, providing not only the professional’s ability to compete in the European labor market, but also enable them to ensure Lithuania‘s quality of life. By this reason, the State involves in vocational training system other stakeholders – social partners: employees, trade unions, employer’s representatives associations. Performing the reform of vocational education and training since 1994, social partnership has taken specific forms, and the Lithuanian Republic Law on Vocational Training defines the competences of the social partners in vocational training processes (Lithuanian Republic Law on Vocational Training, 1997). Ten years later, after the adoption of new Lithuanian Republic Law on Vocational Training in 2007, the social partners‘ activities were expanded. Such a turn towards social dialogue requires qualitative development of human resources in social partner organizations – development of the qualification. The significance of the research and the novelty. The issue of social partnership in vocational training is discussed in various articles, conferences, but the Chambers of Commerce, Industry and Crafts and the Chamber of Agriculture of the Lithuanian Republic (hereinafter Chamber), as social partners and their qualification development has not yet been widely studied. The main problem dealt with in the article is the development of the qualification needs for social partners, because real competences in their activities do not comply with the required knowledge, skills and abilities.[...]

The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of organizational structure on the delivery of quality education in public technical and vocational education institutions in Kenya. The study adopted Survey research design while target population was 689 employees in the Ministry of Educations’ Directorate of Technical Education, National Polytechnics and Technical Institutions. Simple random, stratified and purposive l sampling techniques were used to select 11 managers in Directorate of Technical Education, 15 administrators from National Polytechnics and other technical institutions, and 220 instructors from technical institutions. Data was collected using structured questionnaires and interview schedules. Data was analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively using the statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 17.0. Descriptive and inferential statistics and content and analyses were used for specific data. The analysis was further amplified by subjecting selected results to graphical and tabular techniques. The study established that the structure of the institutions was both inclusive and bureaucratic with a few being described as flexible. The management of the institutions was responsible for the implementation of the educational reforms. However, special groups were charged with responsibility of spearheading the change process. The organizational structure was directly linked with the quality of education as was demonstrated by the regression analysis. This relationship was however, not very strong. The study recommended that technical educational institutions should be structured to suite the particular reform process for effectiveness and achievement of desired results so as to enhance the quality of technical education.

Teaching in the VET sector in Australia, edited by Ros Brennan Kemmis and Liz Atkins, Sydney, New South Wales, David Barlow, 2014, 185 pp., RRP $55, (paperback), ISBN 978-1-921-33361-3This soft-cover book about teaching in the vocational education and training (VET) sector in Australia is a collection of relevant and thought-provoking topics written by 15 highly experienced researchers and practitioners. The editors are Dr Ros Brennan Kemmis AM, Associate Professor at Charles Sturt University in New South Wales, and Dr Liz Atkins, Senior Lecturer in VET at Federation University in Victoria. A dynamic vocational education environment in Australia was the catalyst for the publication, evident from the editors' involvement and experience in national vocational education research and teaching projects. In conjunction, the 15 authors provide extensive expertise on topical issues such as the context of the VET environment in Australia; learning theory for VET teachers; assessment; language, literacy and numeracy; eLearning; and engaging with industry. In particular, Chapter 4 on Assessment in the VET sector, written by Professor Michele Simons from the University of Western Sydney and Anni Yaringa from North Coast TAFE, is one of the topics that will be extremely useful to practitioners. It is investigated further in this review.The format of the book is based on chapters that have an easy-to-navigate plan outlining key words, an abstract and objectives, followed by the chapter topic then ideas for further reading in both print media and online. Within each topic, there are useful reflective learning activities and questions that can be utilized to trigger further discussion. What is especially useful is that the topics are brief snapshots of current VET issues that are substantiated with references from the literature. On the other hand, while the topics and references to peak bodies and organizations are current, a reservation is that as the sector is rapidly changing, these references to certain bodies will become obsolete.There are three educational sectors in Australia: the school sector, the VET sector that delivers specific workplace skills, knowledge and competencies, and higher education. VET is provided by a range of providers from industry, adult education, community organizations and private training providers, often bridging the school-to-work cohort of learners. Teachers in VET come from diverse backgrounds and experiences, while learners in VET may range in age from 15 to 90 years with a range of learning needs. Since VET provides a valid educational pathway through the range of qualifications (as learners develop relevant skills, knowledge and competencies), extensive knowledge of the VET context and system is crucial for practitioners both within, and on either side, of the VET system in being able to meet the needs of learners and businesses.Current industry-specific knowledge is integral for teachers and facilitators in assisting learners in developing workplace skills. However, industries are changing so rapidly that it is an enormous task for teachers in simply keeping on top of these developments. …

The main objective of this article is to contribute to the establishment and dissemination of Biofloc Technology (BFT) in Vocational Education and Training (VET). This technology is presented as a tool to develop knowledge and practice in different techniques related to several VET fields such as Maritime-Fishing, Chemistry, Health, Security and Environment or Food Industry. For this purpose, a table has been elaborated as a guide to get started in the study of this technology. It contains the general information to characterise the main processes within a BFT system: main factors to be measured, the type of sample, main target techniques and equipment and interesting remarks as well as the field of study in VET. Thus, this article highlights the value of BFT as a technology that can enforce collaborative work among different disciplines and can help to increase environmental awareness. Moreover, by implementing BFT, environmental challenges such as food demand and sustainable production of food with high nutritional value and traceability safety.